Both the Washington Redskins and the Chicago Bears left Week 13 two games under .500, and yet they are still alive in the NFC’s playoff race. The two teams have struggled to find consistency this entire season, but each of them have a good opportunity this Sunday to start a run anew just in time for a solid playoff push.
Who will prevail and increase their odds of making the postseason this coming Sunday? Let’s break down this pivotal matchup below. Afterwards, check out Week 14’s equally compelling clashes in Buffalo vs. Philadelphia and Indianapolis vs. Jacksonville.
[sc:Football ]Washington Redskins vs. Chicago Bears Preview
Where: Soldier Field, Chicago
When: Sunday, December 13, 1:00 PM ET
Line: Washington Redskins (+3.5) at Chicago Bears (-3.5); total: 44.0 – view all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: FOX
Betting on the Washington Redskins (5-7)
[sc:NFL240banner ]Leave it to the division rival Dallas Cowboys to crush the Washington Redskins’ spirit on Monday Night.
The boys from The Capital suffered a heartbreaking 19-16 loss by way of Dallas kicker Dan Bailey’s game-winning field goal in an otherwise mess of a game that saw the two teams exchange three field goals apiece for the first three-and-a-half quarters of play.
With the defeat, Washington has lost its first game this season where quarterback Kirk Cousins doesn’t throw an interception in the contest, and also its first loss at home since the season opener. Cousins was not all bad in general (22-of-31 for 219 yards and a TD), but he found very little help from the rest of the offense that also committed a ton of drive-crippling penalties.
Wideout DeSean Jackson (six catches, 80 receiving yards) did his part by hauling-in Washington’s only touchdown of the game. However, he also tried to do a little too much before his game-tying TD late in the fourth quarter by fumbling a long and barely elusive punt return that eventually led to Dallas’ first TD of the contest.
At least the defense was relatively solid in containing the Cowboys’ offense, and that unit even caused three fumbles that were all recovered. Then again, those takeaways only resulted to a mere three points, which means that the ‘Skins have to work on taking advantage of such momentum-swinging possessions.
They’ll certainly need to fix that issue this coming Sunday in Soldier Field already, especially with their playoff dreams hinging on an unenviable second game of a back-to-back road trip. Washington has lost its last nine games on the road, going 2-7 against the spread in that same span.
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Betting on the Chicago Bears (5-7)
Speaking of heartbreaking losses, the Chicago Bears were also on the losing end of such a misfortune on Sunday as well when the San Francisco 49ers beat them on a 71-yard touchdown pass in overtime on their own home turf.
By all accounts, Jay Cutler did not have a good day taking control of Chicago’s passing game as he threw one pick and no touchdowns for just 202 yards on 18-of-31 passing.
But in unlikely fashion, it was typically reliable kicker Robbie Gould who mainly contributed to the Bears’ defeat. Gould missed two field goals, none bigger than the 36-yarder that would’ve given his team the win right before the end of regulation.
Still, the Bears had some positives to take away from the loss. They collectively ran for 170 yards on the ground behind four different rushers (with four carries from Cutler himself), and also sacked Niner QB Blaine Gabbert four times. A formidable pass rush this coming Sunday would do wonders against Washington’s Kirk Cousins, who turns into an erratic play-caller in road games.
And while the Redskins are indeed horrendous on the road this season, Chicago is actually just as bad playing in front of its own Windy City fans. The team is just 1-5 this season (2-4 ATS) in games played at Soldier Field.
Writer’s Prediction
Chicago does enough to keep its faint postseason hopes alive, 23-19.
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